


The Promise

by gold_tree



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003) - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Baby Luke Skywalker, Hurt Obi-Wan Kenobi, Obi-Wan Kenobi Needs a Hug, Obi-Wan Kenobi is a Mess, codywan - Freeform, star wars sad hours
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-24
Updated: 2021-02-24
Packaged: 2021-03-14 18:54:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,106
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29671725
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gold_tree/pseuds/gold_tree
Summary: In the time it takes Obi-Wan Kenobi to take young Luke Skywalker to Tatooine, he has plenty of time to reflect on the life he’s leaving behind, the people he’s lost, and the promises he’s broken.
Relationships: CC-2224 | Cody/Obi-Wan Kenobi, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Ahsoka Tano, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Luke Skywalker, Qui-Gon Jinn & Obi-Wan Kenobi
Comments: 1
Kudos: 16





	The Promise

Obi-Wan Kenobi held the bundle of blankets to his chest tightly with one hand as he pulled the ship into hyperspace, keeping his eyes glued on the stars as they streaked and distorted around him. In his arms, he carried all that was left of his padawan, his friend, his brother. He carried all that was left of Anakin Skywalker and Padme Amidala, and this time he had promised himself that he wouldn’t fail him, that he would keep him safe.  
The baby gurgled slightly, and he glanced down at it. Two wide, blue eyes stared back, and he was greeted by a small whine as the child flailed his arms around wildly. Luke. That had been the name Padme had given him just before she died. Luke Skywalker.  
“... so, Luke,” he said, pulling the blankets back a little, “are you excited to meet your family?”  
Luke gurgled, a hand falling on his finger. Obi-Wan fell silent for a moment, staring down at it.  
“I’m afraid that I can’t stay with you, little one,” he said gently. “I’ll be close by, but it would be unsafe for us to grow too close.”  
The baby was tugging at his finger slightly, and he let him guide it up to his mouth, where he began to softly gnaw on it. Obi-Wan laughed.  
“A little nuisance, aren’t you?” He teased. He didn’t pull his finger away, however. The child was quiet, and the last thing he wanted was to deliver a fussy baby.  
He cursed himself silently. He was already growing attached. It was something about the way the boy looked at him, the feeling of his tiny hand around his finger... he thought back to the days when he was training Anakin. It was those eyes. Big, blue, so innocent... his mind wandered back to that little boy on Tatooine and the promise he made to him. The promise that was, eventually, broken. His destiny had not been with the jedi after all, had it? What did that make him? A liar? He looked back down at Luke and his heart lurched.  
“It’s going to be different this time,” he said quietly. “I’m going to get it right. I pro-“ His voice broke and he looked up, blinking back tears. Not in front of the baby... “I promise you, Luke,” he said, forcing conviction into his voice. “I promise that I won’t fail you. I won’t get it wrong this time. You’re going to have a good life. I’ll make sure of it.”  
A sob caught in his throat as the ship lurched out of hyperspace and the hulking form of Tatooine loomed in front of them. Obi-Wan gently pulled his finger away from Luke and wiped it off on his robes, then took a hold of the yoke. He took a deep breath, shutting his eyes for just a moment as he gathered himself. Be strong, he told himself. Be strong.

———

The house was small, only one room and a small cave underneath, but it would do. Ben set down his bags and removed his robe, draping it across a bench. He had always been losing robes during the war. They either got burned, scorched, or he simply lost them on the battlefield. He could have sworn that Ahsoka stole one, but he could never prove it. Ahsoka. That’s a name he hadn’t heard in a long time. Ben wondered where she was now, if she was alright... of course she wasn’t. Jedi or not, Order 66 meant that she was likely dead. There was nothing he could do about that now.  
He wandered over to the fire and ignited it, getting himself a pot to boil water for tea. So who did he have left then? As he pulled up a stool to watch the water, he ran though the names of his friends in his mind. Qui-Gon was long dead. Padme was gone as well, and Anakin had turned to the dark side... Windu had been killed by Palpatine and Yoda was in hiding, and Fisto died along with Luminara and the rest of the jedi in the senate building and temple. The younglings had been killed by Anakin, a fact which even now made his stomach lurch, and Ahsoka was presumed dead. As for the clones, everyone was gone. Rex, Thire, Echo, Hunter, Wolffe, Fox, Kix, Cody... at the thought of Cody his eyes prickled with tears once more. How could he have done such a thing? How could he have shot down his friend without hesitation? Ben hoped Cody considered him his friend, that somehow he hadn't meant to do what he did, that he hadn’t wanted to. How unlike him it was... only moments before he had handed him his lightsaber, and Ben had heard the playfulness in his voice, the slight teasing nature to his words. He remembered long nights on the field when Cody would take his helmet off and sit beside him and they would talk about after the war, what they would do, and they would laugh together and imagine a perfect future... and he would look over at Cody and see the glimmer in his eyes, the sadness, the longing. He would see past the face, the features identical to those of his brothers, and to Cody, his Cody, a man who had dreams, ambitions, hopefulness, love...  
Ben put his head in his hands and softly sobbed. He couldn’t hold it back any longer. Everything was crumbling around him; Anakin was gone, Padme was gone, Ahsoka was gone, the clones were gone, and Cody... his shoulders shook, letting out years worth of pain, suffering, and heartbreak.  
“Why...” he choked, his voice hoarse. “What did I ever do to deserve this? Why me?”  
As the water began to boil over, spitting and sizzling onto the fire below, Ben felt a hand on his shoulder. It was hardly noticeable, not much more than an energy, a presence beside him, but he felt it nonetheless. He looked up, eyes red and tears streaming down his cheeks, soft sobs catching in this throat, and into a pair of soft, sorrowful eyes. He supposed it should have comforted him, but instead another sob wrenched though his frame. The figure beside him frowned, kneeling beside him and holding a hand to his back as he cried.  
“Be calm, Obi-Wan,” it said. “Everything is alright.”  
“Master-“ he said, reaching a shaking hand out to him. “Are you... p-proud of me?”  
A warm smile crept across Qui-Gon’s lips as he nodded, brushing his fingertips with Obi-Wan’s. “Of course I am,” he said. “So very proud.”


End file.
